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Zak and dinner at Toby Appel’s
So last night after ASQ attended the lower string seminar at Juilliard, our dear friend Toby Appel and his wife, Carolyn, graciously invited us to dinner. Not only is Toby an amazing educator, violinist and violist, he is an amazing cook as well. Every time we go over to Toby’s for dinner, he surprises us… Continue Reading
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Zak and Manhattan meatballs
Finding good food while on the road can sometimes be quite challenging but when we come to NYC, we run across the opposite problem. There are SO many amazing restaurants in Manhattan, it’s sometimes hard to choose. A few months back I was watching the Food Network and I saw a show featuring the Meatball… Continue Reading
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Sandy on chamber music in the barrios of Buenos Aires
On my first Tuesday in Buenos Aires, I started off in search for a new tuxedo shirt, as mine had bitten the dust. The sleeves were too short, and the whole showed signs of having done a little too much good service. As I headed out in search of an alternative, the window-shopping provided good… Continue Reading
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Sandy’s walkabout in Buenos Aires
Correction: This blog post was erroneously attributed to Paul instead of Sandy – our apologies for the mixup! As I’ve mentioned in earlier posts to these blogs, resting and down-time while on the road frequently affords a welcome and stimulating opportunity to get out and about in less familiar cultures and cities. It’s no doubt… Continue Reading
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Sandy on the SF indie rock scene
I passed reluctantly on the Marin Symphony concert that Paul wrote about the other night. I knew it would be memorable – such a fine ensemble under Maestro Neale, and with such a triple AAA rated viola section to back up pianist Joyce Yang, it must have been a fabulous evening! I did not miss… Continue Reading
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Paul and his busman’s holiday
Last night I took a little busman’s holiday, going to see the Marin Symphony performing at the Marin Civic Center. I went to hear our friend and quintet partner, Joyce Yang, perform the Rachmaninoff Paganini Variations. Joyce played exquisitely (as usual) and the orchestra sounded excellent. I even stuck around to hear Alasdair Neale lead… Continue Reading
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Paul on the road in Mendocino County
Sunday, Oct. 3rd, 12-midnight Back now from this weekend sweep of gorgeous Mendocino County. A bit saddle-sore from the driving- I did it all. Fred did almost all the talking ( I know deep down he feels he has to keep up a constant chatter in order to keep me awake as he has done… Continue Reading
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Sandy on working on the road – preparations for CSU Summer Arts 2010
Sometimes being quiet in a hotel room without the accumulation of chores that sit on the home/office desk can be liberating. It’s a welcome chance to read a book, take an afternoon snooze or get out and walk a little in a less familiar neighborhood. Even if it’s raining “cats and dogs” as it has… Continue Reading
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Paul on books and life on the road
Whenever I have a good book on tour the memories of the performances and the places we visit become inextricably associated with the literature. A few of the books that have that sort of resonance with past travels are Larry McMurtry’s “Lonesome Dove”, Barbara Kingsolver’s “The Poisonwood Bible”, Paul Auster’s “Brooklyn Follies” and “Oracle Night”,… Continue Reading
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Fred on performing at Peterson-Kermani Performance Hall
We performed an informal concert today at the brand new Peterson-Kermani Performance Hall at St. Lawrence University. Last minute cleanup before opening the house for the first time. We played movements from Mozart “The Hunt”, Schubert “Death and the Maiden”, Shostakovich String Quartet No. 4, and Dvorak Op. 106. As we played our first notes… Continue Reading
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ASQ and Kronos Quartet
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Zak on Roger Woodward’s DSCH recordings
I thought it might be interesting for ASQ fans out there to explain a little bit why Roger Woodward’s recording of the 24 Preludes & Fugues by Shostakovich was the inspiration behind my transcriptions for string quartet. Before we started our Shostakovich cycle recording project we were discussing how to organize each of the discs. We realized early… Continue Reading
